The cost of hiring skilled software developers, security specialists and data experts has gone up by about 30 per cent in Australia in just 12 months, and the policy of trying to eliminate COVID-19 from the country is a large part of the reason, software companies claim.

Australia needs to rethink its closed border policy, and make it easier for seasoned technology workers and global talent to either return home or migrate here, if the country’s nascent tech boom is going to continue and without costs spiralling out of control, some leaders in the sector have said.